Grup Mediapro, the Barcelona-based global holding, including The Mediapro Studio, is launching and will manage a €1 billion ($1.1 billion) sports rights brokering fund, targeting established and emerging sports.
The new fund was announced Tuesday in Madrid at a Mediapro 30th anniversary celebration, which catches the company in expansive mode, coming less than a week from the unveil at Cannes Mipcom trade fair of The Mediapro Studio US & Canada’s first English-language slate of series and films.
In the mix are projects from John Turturro, Melissa Leo, “24” showrunner Evan Katz, Oscar winner Juan José Campanella (“The Secret in Their Eyes”) “Mafia Spies’” Tom Donahue, “The Floor” showrunner Anthony Carbone and Matt Hastings (“The Handmaid’s Tale,” “Fallen”).
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At the 30th anniversary, Grup Mediapro also announced that its 10,200 sq. meter Mediapro Yonkers Studios will open its doors in April 2025, its three sound stages occupying a total of 4,600 sq. meters of floor space.
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Mediapro also lifted the lid on Tuesday on Mediapro Xperiences, focused on both new tech creativity and permanent showcases for experiential content.
Founded in 1994 by Jaume Roures and Tatxo Benet, Mediapro largely grew through its sports rights business, striking a deal in a country, then immediately offered production services, which allowed it to set up offices, which then drove into film and TV production. From 2015, Grup Mediapro has embarked on high-end international TV production – such as “The New Pope,” “Locked Up” and “The Head,” – its banner francishe – while expanding robustly into Latin America.
Its U.S. and Canada slate and Yonkers Studios sees the powerhouse doubling down on its U.S. presence, always a long-term objective, pursued tenaciously by Laura Fernández Espeso.
A $1.1 billion rights acquisition fund establishes Grup Mediapro once more as a player on the sports brokering scene, though not on the scale of European leader Sky, which invested $3.2 billion in 2024/25 nor even Canal+, whose 2024/25 outlay is $628 million, according to Enders Analysis.
Benet said on Tuesday that Grup Mediapro is in talks with investors to join the fund. Its compass is far larger than just European soccer. “Our intention is to look for economic support. Our company works over the whole world. We can use our experience to grow a sport, make it worth more money, and benefit from that, like any other investment fund does,” he added.
“The 30th anniversary marks a before and after for Grupo Mediapro, and of a stronger reach than ever before as we go into the future,” said Laura Fernández Espeso, its managing director.
“Our aim is to impact. We can and want to be world leaders. We are present on five continents, have more than 50 international offices and a 7,000 workforce which never stops growing,” she added.
“A next-generation production center,” the Mediapro Yonkers Studios will suppose a 10-year investment of $70 million and aims for first-year 60% occupancy, representing 20% of Mediapro US revenues. The installations offer a virtual production set, LED walls, 8K cameras a 5G network, a digitalised workspace and integrated Unreal Engine technology.
